


a touch of amber

by poetictragedy



Series: thirty prompts [12]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Reality Show, Drag Queens, Mechanic!Derek, sassy!Jackson, sassy!Stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-08
Updated: 2013-05-08
Packaged: 2017-12-10 18:59:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/789143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/poetictragedy/pseuds/poetictragedy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles Stilinski is a twenty-one year old drag queen who's competing on RuPaul's Drag Race for the title of America's Next Drag Superstar. He's beaten nine other queens to get in the final four and wants to crown so bad he can almost taste it.</p>
<p>The challenge Ru gives them is simple: take a manly mechanic and teach them how to become drag queens (which really means turn them into the queens' fishy, fierce drag sisters).</p>
<p>And Stiles gets paired up with Derek.</p>
            </blockquote>





	a touch of amber

**Author's Note:**

> prompt: knowledge.
> 
> I apologize for any mistakes you find and for any messiness.
> 
> Also, I want to explain Stiles' drag name (Electryone). When I was coming up with names for them, I decided to go with something from Greek mythology. This name popped out and I read up on it. Apparently, according to Wiki, people thought that Electryone was possibly the goddess of the morning. And her name, in Greek, is something like the word for "amber", like the sunrise, and like Stiles/Dylan's eyes. So it seemed only fitting. 
> 
> (I may end up writing something else for this, I'm not sure yet.)

Thirteen queens entered; only four remain…

And Stiles Stilinski, AKA  _Electryone_  or  _Electryo_  for short, is lucky to be in the top four still competing for the title of  _America’s Next Drag Superstar_. 

 

*****

On the last runway, Stiles was in the bottom two; he had to lip sync against his best friend and sent her home. It made him feel guilty to watch her walk away but he reminded himself that it was a competition and that if he hadn’t sent her home, Stiles would have been the one to sashay away.

Now, though, Stiles knows he needs to step his game up if he wants to win and take home the crown. The other three queens are good and they’re more experienced than he is, but that isn’t going to stop Stiles from doing his very best.

When they get to the workroom the next morning, Stiles sits at his table and starts making a rough sketch of a dress he wants to make for the next runway. Though he doesn’t know what their next challenge is, Stiles still wants to be prepared and knows he can make alterations, if need be.

RuPaul joins them not even fifteen minutes later and the queens gather around for their mini challenge — which just so happens to be about exercising. Stiles groans when the trainer comes in and he busts his ass, ending up in the final two before he collapses onto the floor, panting.

Jackson, whose drag name is Sapphire, ends up wining the challenge.

“Sapphire,” Ru says while the other girls catch their breath, “you’ve won the mini challenge. That means you get to choose which queen gets paired up with one of  _these_  men.”

Just as she says that, a group of manly dudes walks into the workroom and Stiles glares at them all, groaning. He listens as RuPaul explains the challenge to them, saying they need to turn these burly mechanics into fierce drag queens.

“Well…” Jackson hums as he walks over to the line. “What’s your name?”

A man with scruff and cheekbones Stiles would kill for answers, “Derek.”

“Derek,” the queen replies and grins. “You’re paired with Electryone.”

Stiles’ eyes widen as he stands up straight, watching as Derek walks over to him, his hand extended. “Nice to meet you, Derek,” he says, shaking the other man’s hand slowly.

“Nice to meet you, Electryone.” Derek smiles and his eyes light up in a way that has Stiles’ heart pounding in his chest.

The other men — Chris, Peter, and Matt — get paired up with their queens. Isaac, whose drag name is  _Shirley Temple_ , gets Peter; Danny, whose drag name is  _Keahi_ , gets Chris; and Jackson keeps Matt for himself.

Once RuPaul leaves the workroom, the queens take their mechanics to their tables and start discussing outfits for them. Ru said they needed to make the manly dudes look like they were the queen’s sister and they had to come up with a duet together.

And looking at Derek again, Stiles knows he’s not going to get any work done with that gorgeous man near him.

“Right,” he says and laughs, sitting down across from Derek. “Have you ever done drag before?”

“No, this is my first time,” Derek answers, licking his lips.

“Well, there’s a first time for everything, darling!”

Derek laughs and nods his head, his hazel eyes settling on Stiles’. “So how long have  _you_  been doing drag?” _  
_

“Me? Oh, I dunno,” Stiles answers with a shrug. “Three years, maybe.”

“Wow.” Whistling, Derek folds his hands on the table and shakes his head slowly, laughing. “So how old are you, then?”

A laugh bubbles up from Stiles’ throat and he shakes his head. “A lady never reveals her age, honey,” he replies and touches Derek’s hand.

“You don’t look that old.”

“That’s because I’m not.” Stiles winks and laughs, moving off of his stool to walk around, tugging at the hem of Derek’s shirt. “Let me see what I’m working with,” he mumbles.

Without hesitation, Derek lifts his black v-neck up and off, throwing it onto the table. Stiles bites back a noise when he sees Derek’s body and drags his tongue along his lips, pulling back to study the other man.

“You’re _very_  manly,” he grumbles, pouting.

“Is that a bad thing?” Derek quirks a brow, the hint of a grin tugging at his lips.

Stiles laughs and shakes his head. “Maybe not for sex, no, but for drag and making it believable it’s a very bad thing.”

“You can work your magic, right?”

“Oh, honey, I’m going to pull out  _all_  the stops to make you pretty,” Stiles answers with a grin, bringing a hand up to chew on his thumbnail. “I know you said you’ve never done  _drag_  but have you ever worn heels?”

Derek makes a face and Stiles swears that he’s blushing.

“You have!” Stiles gasps and slaps Derek’s shoulder. “Spill. When did you wear heels and, more importantly, could you  _walk_  in them?”

“It was a couple of years ago,” the mechanic grumbles as he runs a hand through his hair, sighing, “and I was terrible at it.”

Nodding his head, Stiles holds a finger up in a ‘give me a moment’ gesture before walking over to his corner. He grabs a couple pairs of shoes, all different heights, and brings them over. 

“Those are huge,” Derek mumbles and Stiles replies with a hushed version of ‘that’s what he said’, which makes the other man laugh.

“And they aren’t as huge as you think. I brought three-inch, four-inch, and five-inch heels over here.” Stiles hums to himself and grabs a pair of plain, black peep-toe platform slingbacks with a three inch heel, handing them to Derek.

And Derek looks at them like they’re going to bite.

“Come on,” Stiles laughs, wiggling the shoes in front of Derek’s eyes, “they aren’t going to bite and I’m not going to let you fall.”

“Fine.” With a sigh, Derek takes the shoes and toes out of his own boots, bending over to take his socks off. He slips the heels on one at a time and looks up at Stiles once he has them on, huffing. “I’m going to break my neck,” he says.

Stiles snorts and shakes his head, holding both hands out to Derek, wiggling his fingers. “Take my hands,” he instructs the other man, smiling brightly when Derek’s hands slip into his own. “I’m going to teach you how to walk like a lady.”

“Ladies don’t generally have a dick between their legs.”

“It’ll be easier to walk with your junk tucked,” Stiles points out and laughs at the colour that bleeds into Derek’s cheeks. “But that lesson comes later, don’t worry. We’re doing one thing at a time.”

Once Derek’s gripping his hands tightly, Stiles walks backwards and gives the mechanic instructions. He tells Derek to walk on his toes and to move gracefully, like they’re the only ones in the room, though Stiles can feel the other girls’ eyes on them.

It takes a few minutes for Derek to get it and he lets go of Stiles’ hands so he can walk on his own. The queen steps away but stays close enough so that if Derek falls, he can help him, and claps as the older man starts walking on his own. It’s shaky, of course, but over all not that bad.

“Are you  _sure_  you’ve never done this before?” Stiles asks, smirking.

“You and I got the manliest fuckers in here,” Danny interupts, calling from across the room where he’s doing the same thing with his mechanic. Except Chris is wobbling more than Derek and Stiles grins. “But yours isn’t as hairy!”

A quiet laugh rises in Stiles’ throat and he lets it die away. “Come on,” he says to Derek as he walks over to the table, swaying his hips. Just when he gets back to his seat, Stiles looks over his shoulder to see Derek doing the same.

“How am I doing?” Derek asks as he stops in front of the table, gripping the edge.

“Perfect! Now that we know you can walk in three inch heels, we’re going to try these puppies.” With a grin, Stiles grabs the four inch, red platform pumps and hands them over. “Take those off, baby.”

Derek grumbles and kicks out of the heels, swapping them for the others. As soon as he’s standing on them, he wobbles a little and Stiles can’t help but laugh at him.

“Wow, okay, hold on.” The queen walks over and gets an arm around Derek’s waist, holding on as they walk between the tables. After a moment, Stiles lets go and watches the mechanic move slowly, his legs shaking.

“I think the three-inch heels will work best,” Derek mumbles on his way back, his hands going to grab Stiles’ shoulders as he falls backwards.

Once he has his mechanic upright, Stiles purses his lips. “I generally wear four-to-five inch heels but… I can work with three, if you’re not feeling confident with them.”

“Thanks.” The look on Derek’s face is one of relief and gratitude, which makes Stiles’ heart jump in his chest as he nods. “So, what’s my drag name going to be?”

“I don’t know,” Stiles mumbles, helping Derek to his stool before sitting down across from him.

“My sister Laura always said I looked like a Brittany or something.”

Stiles pulls his eyebrows together and laughs. “No way in  _hell_  am I letting you pick your own drag name, honey, and I’m not letting you get away with a name like  _‘Brittany’_. My name is Electryone - or Electryo - so it should be something reflective of that,” he muses.

“I was going to ask about that,” Derek says, pointing at Stiles. “Your name, I mean. Where’d it come from?”

“People say that Electryone was probably the goddess of the morning — in Greek mythology, I mean. Her name is akin to the word for “amber” and the colour of a sunrise is amber.” Stiles shrugs and then bats his lashes before looking up at Derek, smiling. “My eyes are amber coloured, so my mom suggested the name.”

A smile spreads across Derek’s face and he nods. “That’s nice,” he mumbles and presses his hands together, lacing his fingers. “Do your parents support your lifestyle, then?”

“Yeah, they do. When I came out to them, my dad was in such shock that he didn’t talk to me for two weeks. My mom was the one who said it didn’t matter who I loved, so long as I was happy,” Stiles answers, licking his lips quickly.

“So your dad’s okay with it now?”

Stiles laughs, nodding. “My dad is perfectly okay with it now. He’s actually threatened several of my boyfriends if they hurt me.”

“And your dad, he’s okay with the drag?” Derek asks quietly.

“Yeah, he’s totally okay with it. I started when I was eighteen, you know, so it wasn’t like I told them I was gay and jumped straight into drag. There was a three year gap between the ‘I’m gay’ conversation and ‘I dress like a woman on the weekends’ one.”

Derek laughs and the sound rumbles deep in his chest. “My mom flipped when I told her I was coming here,” he mumbles.

“Shut up! Was it the happy kind of flipping or the bad kind?” Stiles asks, suddenly curious to know more about Derek.

“The good kind. She loves drag queens and gay people, you know; she’s a big supporter,” Derek answers and chuckles. “She told me I better come home with advice for her or she’s disowning me.”

“That is awesome. Your mom and I should meet sometime.” With a wink, Stiles grabs his sketchbook and flips to another page, putting his pencil between his teeth. “Measuring time,” he mumbles around it.

To Stiles’ surprise, Derek is extremely patient and willing. He undresses when he’s told to and Stiles tries his hardest not to stare that other man’s package as he’s measuring his body.

Once he has all Derek’s measurements down, Stiles sits down again and rests his elbow on the table. He cups his chin in hand and looks at Derek for a long moment — until a light bulb goes off in his mind.

“Electra.”

“Huh?” Derek asks, blinking.

“Electra — that’s your drag name. Electryo and Electra,” Stiles says, grinning broadly as he writes both names on top of the paper listening the mechanic’s measurements.

Derek hums and nods, smiling. “That actually sounds good,” he replies and licks his lips, his tongue dragging from one corner to the other at an impossibly slow rate.

“Damn right it sounds good! Plus, Electra was a princess, so it ties in with the whole goddess thing.”

“How do you know all of this?”

Blushing, Stiles chews on the eraser and shrugs. “I like Greek mythology and I like researching things. You know how you’re on the internet, looking one thing up and you click a link for another? Then you end up on some website for, like, cannibalistic serial killers. That’s kind of how I am,” he explains.

“Who… researches cannibalistic serial killers?” Derek pulls his eyebrows together and stares at Stiles, chuckling nervously.

“You’d be surprised at the things people are interested in,” the queen answers and laughs, gliding his teeth along his lower lip. “But I’ve read everything about all of the serial killers.”

The look on Derek’s face makes Stiles laugh and he assures the other man that he isn’t a psycho, just a bookworm. When Derek relaxes, Stiles starts sketching a dress for the mechanic while they talk about Derek’s favourite colours and if he prefers short clothing or long clothing.

Once he’s done with the sketch, which looks similar to the dress that he made for himself, Stiles goes to work on making them both. He gets Derek to help him only when he needs it and tries not to let the other queens’ comments bother him.

But Jackson being Jackson, he decides to make Stiles feel inadequate.

“That’s what you’re putting your dude in?” Jackson asks, leaning against the table with his mechanic next to him, both looking smug.

Stiles looks up from his sewing machine and blinks. “Yeah, why?”

“Oh, no reason. It just looks… frumpy, don’t you think? We’re supposed to be making these bitches look  _fierce_ , not busted.”

“Shut the hell up, Sapphire,” Stiles grumbles and goes back to sewing, running the length of a dark purple fabric under the needle. “You’re just feeling smug because you got  _the least_  buff guy in here.”

Jackson grins and nods, moving a hand to touch Matt’s face. “Isn’t he  _gorgeous_? And he already knows how to walk in heels,” he says, sighing dreamily. “It’s like the gay gods have smiled upon me!”

“Mmm, you rely too heavily on your looks, Saph.”

“When you’ve got it, flaunt it, honey. I am the TP and you aren’t.”

“TP?” Derek whispers as he leans toward Stiles.

A laugh escapes Stiles’ lips before he answers, “The total package.”

“Exactly. Don’t you forget it.” With that, Jackson walks back to his table and Stiles flips him off, forgetting about the cameras for a moment.

Oh well, he thinks, they’ll blur it out.

“He’s a bitch,” Derek mumbles and Stiles laughs again, nodding in agreement as he continues constructing the long gown he’s been working on for Derek.

It takes another hour and a half for Stiles to get Derek’s dress done. He starts working on his own before they’re told it’s time to leave and he wishes he had more time to work on them both.

 

*****

When the next morning comes, Stiles walks into the workroom behind Derek and they work on their dresses again, along with the outfits they’re going to wear during their duet. Which has to be a cheer routine, so Stiles goes with cheerleader outfits — but makes them a little more revealing than he should.

“You come up with a cheer,” Stiles says when he’s done piecing their outfits together, “and I’m going to go get the clippers.”

“Clippers?” Derek’s eyes widen as he looks at Stiles. “For _what_?”

The queen grins but doesn’t answer, just walks over to his luggage. He comes back with the electric razor and plugs it up before motioning for Derek to take his shirt off.

“I’m going to shave you,” Stiles says a second before turning the clippers on and running them along Derek’s arm. He watches hair fall onto the floor and makes a face, knowing that the older man will look strange without his hair.

“Is this really necessary?”

Stiles keeps cutting the hair on one of Derek’s arms and shuts the razor off before stepping back. “Yes,” he says and points to the bare skin, smiling brightly. “This is  _fish_  — ” he points to the other arm ” — this is  _dude_. There are no dudes allowed on the runway.”

“What’s ‘fish’?”

“Oh my god.” Stiles laughs and covers his mouth with his hand, shaking his head for a moment as he calms down. “It basically means feminine,” he answers and turns the clippers on to shave Derek’s other arm. 

Once they’re both shaved, Stiles steps back and looks at his work, humming in approval. He goes about shaving Derek’s chest and stomach, wiping hair off of his lap before telling the mechanic to drop his pants.

“Drop my — what?”

“Pants. I need to shave your legs if you’re going to be my sister.” 

Derek makes a face but does as he’s told, letting his jeans fall to the floor. Stiles gets on his knees and flips off Danny, who makes a comment about how giving head to the guests is against the rules.

“I’m shaving him,” he calls out above the sound of the clippers and spends fifteen minutes going over Derek’s legs. Eventually he gets done and Stiles stands before motioning to Derek’s face. “Now the scruff.”

“No.”

“Yes,” Stiles insists. “You can’t have scruff and try to pass for a woman.”

A frown tugs at Derek’s mouth and he sighs, “Fine. Get it over with.”

With a happy noise, Stiles moves to shave Derek’s face, being extremely careful. It takes ten minutes for him to get every inch of scruff off and he turns the clippers off once and for all.

“Wow.” 

“What?” Derek asks before turning to look at the mirror, whining low in the back of his throat. “I look  _weird_ ,” he mumbles.

Stiles laughs and pats his shoulder. “You look fierce, honey!”

“You better win.”

“I intend on doing just that,” the queen assures him and the two move over to the makeup counter.

Isaac, Jackson, and Danny are already there with their mechanics who all look jacked up. The only one that looks remotely good is Matt, who came into the competition with no hair on his face and whose body isn’t as toned and muscular as the rest.

“Your dude looks like a baby face with no scruff,” Isaac points out and Stiles shakes his head as he opens his makeup kit. “Who has the youngest mechanic?”

“Me,” Jackson points out, grinning smugly. “Matt’s only  _twenty-two_.”

Stiles rolls his eyes and starts getting his makeup together before going to work on Derek’s eyebrows — or, well, getting rid of them.

“You aren’t going to wax my brows, are you?” The older man asks and the queen just shakes his head as he goes into an explanation of makeup and how he’s just hiding Derek’s brows so he can draw new ones.

And Stiles learns quickly that painting someone else’s face is hard work, especially if you’re trying to make them look polished and not busted.

It takes nearly twenty minutes for Stiles to get Derek’s face done and he actually likes what he sees. He outlined the mechanic’s eyes in black eyeliner and then put purple eye shadow, along with a smokey gray colour on his eyelids. Derek’s face is pale, just like Stiles’ after he does his makeup, and his lips are painted a deep red.

By the time Stiles gets his own makeup done, they only have a few minutes to get into their outfits for the “cheer challenge”. So he helps Derek get into his and teaches him how to tuck, praying to all the gods he knows the names of that the mechanic catches on quickly.

After a hands-on lesson, Derek gets his junk tucked and they go out in front of the judges to do their cheer. Which is, in Stiles’ opinion, awesome because Derek wrote it and Stiles did the dance moves — which they practiced only once before going out on stage.

Stiles and Derek haul ass back into the workroom to change into their gowns, which are similar in shape and colour — but Stiles’ is shorter. He likes showing off more leg and body, which Derek doesn’t, but they go well together.

Or so they think.

 

*****

The queens stand on the runway with their mechanics and wait for the judges’ critiques. Stiles’ heart is pounding hard behind his ribs and his heart rate only skyrockets when Derek takes his hand, squeezing it tightly.

“Next up,” Ru says, turning to look at Stiles and Derek. “Electryone and Electra.”

“Hi, Ru.” Derek and Stiles say at the same time.

All four judges look at them for a long moment before Ru says: “I love the purple and how it contrasts with your skin tones. I just wish Electra would have shown a little more body.”

“I agree with Ru,” Michelle says, frowning. “Electryone, your body is gorgeous and your makeup is flawless… but you could have done a little more with Electra. Maybe shown her hips, her ass, some more leg; anything.”

“Well, Derek wasn’t comfortable showing off too much skin on the runway. The challenge he was fine with,” Stiles says and shrugs, smiling as he hears the rest of the judges’ opinions.

When the other girls are critiqued, Stiles listens and internally fist-pumps when Jackson gets called out for his mechanic’s face. He has to bite back a laugh when Jackson tries to come up with a bullshit explanation as to  _why_  his man looks busted.

Ru sends the girls away and Stiles joins Derek on the couch in the lounge, sighing heavily. “We’re screwed,” he mumbles.

“Not necessarily. Sapphire got some negative comments,” Derek points out and puts his hand on Stiles’ knee, squeezing. “You’ll be fine.”

Stiles nods and drinks quietly, waiting to be called back onto the stage. He focuses on the hand on his knee, desperately wishing that having sex while at the competition wasn’t banned because he wants Derek more than anything.

 

*****

They’re called back to stage a few minutes later and Derek hugs Stiles, kissing his cheek before letting him go. All the way back to the runway, the queen’s heart is pounding and he feels like he might throw up all over himself while they wait for Ru to tell them who’s staying and who’s going.

In the end, it’s down to Electryone and Sapphire.

Stiles curses under his breath and squeezes Isaac’s hand as he walks to the back of the stage, joining Danny. Ru wishes them luck and Stiles nods his head, looking over at where Jackson is standing, taking a deep breath.

The music starts - _Glamorous_ by Fergie - and Stiles can’t help but grin when he hears it. He starts moving to the beat, swaying his hips as he walks across the runway, and when the lyrics start, he gives it his all.

Jackson, on the other hand, goes nuts with the song. He moves in ways that Stiles has never seen before and halfway through the song, Stiles knows that he’s done.

As soon as the song ends, Stiles stands straight, feeling his legs tremble as he waits for Ru to speak. She looks at both of them, then flicks her gaze to Jackson before saying, “Sapphire… shante, you stay.”

The other girls gasp behind them and Stiles smiles, tears rimming his eyes as Ru apologizes and tells him to sashay away. On his way down the runway, Stiles stops to hug Danny and Isaac, kissing them both on the cheek.

Derek is waiting for him in the lounge when he gets there and he says, “I’m sorry you lost.”

“Hey, it’s not your fault.” Stiles hugs the other man and goes to undress, putting his things into his luggage slowly. He writes a note on the mirror, like all the queens do, and wishes Danny and Isaac luck.

As he gathers the rest of his things, Stiles watches Derek undress and get back into his normal clothes. He shakes his head and takes his things to he door, setting them up against the door frame.

“So, what’s your real name?” Derek asks, startling Stiles as he comes up behind him.

“A lady never reveals her real age, name, or weight,” Stiles points out in a soft voice, smiling at the other man. “But my real name is Stiles.”

Nodding, Derek smiles and helps Stiles take his things back to his room, lingering around the door for a moment. “Here’s my number,” he says and gives the queen a business card, grinning. “Call me sometime.”

“Will do, Derek.”

“It’s Electra,” is all Derek says as he walks away, moving down the hall before disappearing. Stiles watches him until he’s gone and shuts the door, sighing as he goes back into his room to wait for instructions.


End file.
